“The decision was tough but ultimately I wanted to put myself in a situation that would best prepare me to be playing at my best when the Rangers start up again,” McDonagh told the New York Daily News through email Tuesday afternoon. “I love playing this game and this is a great opportunity for me to play and stay in game shape so I can ultimately be at my best to help the Rangers win."

McDonagh, in his first full NHL season, played on the Rangers' top pairing alongside All-Star Dan Girardi. The end result: seven goals, 25 assists, 24:44 in ice time per game, including an average of more than three minutes on the penalty kill, a sprinkling of power-play time and matchups against elite forwards on virtually every shift.

A Minnesota native, McDonagh immediately becomes the best North American player in the KHL, though Russian superstars like Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Pavel Datsyuk and Ilya Kovalchuk have already made the jump.